FBI investigating woman said she stole Pelosi’s laptop to sell to Russia

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has obtained an arrest warrant for a Pennsylvania woman who allegedly stole a laptop from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. to sell. of the Central Intelligence Agency.

In an affidavit signed Sunday, FBI Special Agent Jonathan Lund said the agency was investigating Riley June Williams after a person described as her “ former romantic partner ” told authorities Williams was planning the computer to a friend in Russia. who would then pass it on. together with the SVR, the country’s espionage force.

Lund wrote that the former romantic partner said the transfer of the laptop “failed for unknown reasons” and that Williams still has the device or destroyed it.

Williams appears to have fled, Lund wrote in his affidavit. Williams’ mother told local police in Harrisburg, Pa. That Williams had “packed a bag and left her house and told her mother she would be away for a few weeks.”

“WILLIAMS has not provided her mother with any information about her intended destination,” Lund wrote. “Sometime after January 6, 2021, WILLIAMS changed her phone number and deleted what I believe were her social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Reddit, Telegram and Parler.”

Williams is charged with disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds and entering a restricted building. She was not available for comment.

Drew Hammill, a spokesperson for Pelosi’s office, did not immediately respond to a question. Hammill said shortly after the attack that a computer had been stolen and that it was only used for presentations.

According to Lund’s affidavit, Williams was identified after her ex-partner called the FBI tip line several times. The FBI also watched video of the riot that appears to show that at the Capitol, Williams is leading a crowd up the stairs leading to Pelosi’s office.

The affidavit also notes that on Jan. 11, Harrisburg police met with Williams’s mother, who has not been identified, after Williams’s mother filed a report of suspects. The agents at one point watched Williams and her mother speak via video chat, it says.

On Saturday, the agents spoke to Williams’s mother again, “who told them that a British media crew had come to her house the night before to ask to speak to WILLIAMS, who was not present.”

That same day, ITV News, a UK-based retail outlet, posted a video on the YouTube page title “Revealed: ITV News Identifies Protester Storming the Capitol.” The video identifies “Riley Williams” as a “22-year-old counselor” from Pennsylvania.

The video reveals that Williams’s mother claims her daughter recently became interested in President Donald Trump’s politics and the message boards popular among the “ far right. ”

Williams’ father told police on Saturday that he drove Williams to DC for the protest, but the two didn’t stay together during the day. He said they returned to Pennsylvania together, according to the affidavit.

Dozens of people have been arrested in connection with the January 6 riot, and federal authorities have said hundreds could eventually be charged.

Michael Sherwin, the United States acting attorney for the District of Columbia, has noted that it is likely that the relatively minor charges filed at the outset could be upgraded as the investigation progresses.

Democratic lawmakers have asked the FBI and other law enforcement agencies to provide information about whether a foreign power played a role in exploiting the attack.